I have 3250 without the generator prep package. Hence, no room in the nose to store the generator when traveling. I can put the generator in the very front of the truck bed, but because the camper electrical port is in the back left corner my cable won't reach it. In order to get the generator in and out of the truck I have to remove my hitch every time.
Where does everyone else keep the generator for easy plug in access? Easy loading and unloading?
Or do I just need to find a longer cable? If I do that I still have the issue of loading and unloading the generator every time we camp.
Good morning,
We have 2 Honda 2000 watt inverter generators hooked on parallel. We keep them chained in the bed of the truck. We use a Pull Rite 2600 and can maneuver around it somewhat easily. The Hondas are only about 47#.
Have you considered the possibility of adding a transfer switch and an additional plug to the front? That would allow you to use the existing cable and you could run the generator while in the bed of the truck assuming proper ventilation and heat control
I put a receptacle in the front of my camper. You haft to be careful with that now because all new portable generators have a CO shut off and probably won’t run in the front of your truck. If you look on line you may be able to find a work around that. For My new Predator I made an aluminum box to put the CO sensor in so it wouldn’t shut the generator off.
Lynwood
If I found a cargo tray that fit in the rear hitch on my truck similar to this one, would that work and still allow for tight turns with my 5th wheel camper? If the tray were just big enough to hold the generator? I have the same generator as the one in the picture.
If I found a cargo tray that fit in the rear hitch on my truck similar to this one, would that work and still allow for tight turns with my 5th wheel camper? If the tray were just big enough to hold the generator? I have the same generator as the one in the picture.
I would not carry the genny on a tray on the truck - put it on your trailer.
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Zack and Donna plus Millie and Ranger
2018 3160RL
"Life is too short to stay indoors, enjoy the ride!"
I would not carry the genny on a tray on the truck - put it on your trailer.
When I take my sxs I pull doubles ans in order to keep the weight of the second trailer to a bare minimum the generator won't fit on that trailer. Machine takes up most of the trailer. Otherwise I could just lock it to the sxs trailer and no issue. If we don't have the sxs it would be super easy to install the rack on the back of the trailer
Just exploring options to dry camp and enjoy it as we have gotten used to rv parks.
If I found a cargo tray that fit in the rear hitch on my truck similar to this one, would that work and still allow for tight turns with my 5th wheel camper? If the tray were just big enough to hold the generator? I have the same generator as the one in the picture.
Assuming you have a hitch on the rear that is adequate for the load. using a rear rack is not a problem when turning. Obviously it does increase the length of your RV when parking or on a ferry.
The one disadvantage of running the generator on a rear rack is that its vibration and noise (to some extent) are passed on to the RV. Putting the genny on the ground or the back of the truck eliminates the vibration problem.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blueblir
I am definitely not an electrician. Is adding the transfer switch fairly easy?
It is not difficult to do if you are somewhat handy. You will have to drill a hole in the RV and run some wire. A number of members have done this and there are Posts on their efforts. Here is one example. Just do a Search on something like "front 50 amp plug" (or variants)
Adding a front plug in is the common solution. Makes it easy to use the generator in the bed of the truck, even when running down the road (running the AC to keep the camper cool). A fan running off the generator will provide enough air circulation to negate any CO sensor issues. Neither my Honda 2000 or Predator 3500 have any problems running in the bed of the truck.
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Carl (n Susan) There is more to life than fuel mileage.
2012 Montana 3700RL Big Sky Package towed by a 2015 Ford F350 6.7L PSD 4WD CC LWB
I have an Cummins' Onan 4500. It weighs 106 pounds dry. Add 4 gallons of fuel and oil and it's even more. And, I have 2 of them for full 50 amp service.
I carry mine inside the camper. We've removed the kitchen table and chairs and use that space for everything else, except eating at. When traveling, the generators are put in the middle of the floor as far forward as possible. When parked, they are put on that slide out. They are out of the way.
When we need them, I carry a ramp and can get them inside and outside the camper door alone, without assistance. When they are running, they are under the King Pin area and I use the same cord I plug into shore power with. It's long enough to reach from the end to the front of the camper.
I've shared my method before and got jumped on for traveling and keeping the generators inside the living area by folks on these forums. But, never has there been a gas smell. Never has there been an oil leak or smell. Never has there been a carbon burning (exhaust smoke smell) inside the camper when they are stored there.
Depending on where we are camped, I sometimes just leave them outside under the King Pin area, but that is rare. (again, it depends on where we are camped).
I can carry both in the bed of my truck. One on each side nearest the tail gate. There is sufficient room to travel with them there, and being under the trailer and with the tail gate locked, it would be pretty hard for theft to happen. But, I just feel better knowing they are completely out-of-sight. That's why they are inside the camper.
Here's how I get them in and out....
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History is not about the past, it's an explanation of the present.
2019 Montana High Country 375FL
2014 Chevy Silverado Duramax, 6.6L Dually
I have an Cummins' Onan 4500. It weighs 106 pounds dry. Add 4 gallons of fuel and oil and it's even more. And, I have 2 of them for full 50 amp service.
I carry mine inside the camper. We've removed the kitchen table and chairs and use that space for everything else, except eating at. When traveling, the generators are put in the middle of the floor as far forward as possible. When parked, they are put on that slide out. They are out of the way.
When we need them, I carry a ramp and can get them inside and outside the camper door alone, without assistance. When they are running, they are under the King Pin area and I use the same cord I plug into shore power with. It's long enough to reach from the end to the front of the camper.
I've shared my method before and got jumped on for traveling and keeping the generators inside the living area by folks on these forums. But, never has there been a gas smell. Never has there been an oil leak or smell. Never has there been a carbon burning (exhaust smoke smell) inside the camper when they are stored there.
Depending on where we are camped, I sometimes just leave them outside under the King Pin area, but that is rare. (again, it depends on where we are camped).
I can carry both in the bed of my truck. One on each side nearest the tail gate. There is sufficient room to travel with them there, and being under the trailer and with the tail gate locked, it would be pretty hard for theft to happen. But, I just feel better knowing they are completely out-of-sight. That's why they are inside the camper.
Here's how I get them in and out....
I have the westinghouse house version of that very generator. When you did put them in the truck near the tailgate, I assume there were no clearance issues between them and the camper?
... When you did put them in the truck near the tailgate, I assume there were no clearance issues between them and the camper?
The bed of my truck is deep enough I can close the Flip-Back cover and completely hide them. I have about a 1/4 inch clearance for the truck bed cover, but they fit with no problems. I have about 6 inches clearance between the bed rails of the truck and the bottom of the fifth wheel overhang. So, when the generators are inside the bed, I can close the cover and keep them out of site. I just don't like site seeing with them in the truck. That's another reason why they end up inside the camper. But for travel .... they travel very well in bed of the truck. Lots of clearance for the trailer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Foldbak
Dutch where did you get that ramp?
Believe it or not... Amazon! I like them because they do fold in half. They can hold (I think) 1500 pounds. But, they do have some spring-i-ness to them that takes some getting use to. They fit very nice in the bed of my pick up truck. There's enough clearance above my Barker Blue Sewer tote for them to fit (side-by-side) and still close the fip-back top. I keep the sewer tote closest to the front of the bed and that first section of fli-back cover is closed (laying down).
The other thing I was not aware of, of course ordering off the internet you're never sure what you are actually getting, is ... all the sharp edges. Those aluminum cut edges are sharp. They are made that way to grip what ever is being driven up or down the ramp. But, it's hard on the hands. It took a while to learn how to handle them safely.
The other thing I use the ramps for are for the dogs. They make a great dog ramp. One ramp by itself still affords room to walk up and down the steps. However, when we use it for a dog ramp, I have to throw a rug over them so the dogs' feet won't get hurt on those sharp edges. The ramp sits on the top step so the door will close. The dogs have to jump up only 1 step that way. We don't have older dogs any more, still young ones, so they don't have problems going up and down the steps. But they did work well for our older dogs when they had difficulty using steps.
So, the ramps get used for several things. They get used a home a lot too. They are great for loading things into the bed of the pick-up.
Foldback:
I like your cargo carrier in your photos above. Although my Montana has a factory hitch, attaching anything to the hitch and then loading it up will block my back door access storage area. I have a storage area across the entire back. This is where I carry all my "stuff" for setting up the camper.... electric cords, lumber for leveling, garden hoses. Blocking that door would mean unloading everything from the carrier first before I could access anything in the compartment. That's just too much work to do when initially setting up camp or when breaking camp. So, I've never been able to put a carrier there.... even though I have one I used on my previous travel trailer.
Without a storage area there, your's looks like it works very well. That's a nice set-up!
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History is not about the past, it's an explanation of the present.
2019 Montana High Country 375FL
2014 Chevy Silverado Duramax, 6.6L Dually
The Honda 2000i is 15 years old and I doubt it has a CO sensor. I run it in the truck bed all the time.
The HF Predator 3500 is a different story. I had one from three years ago that I ran in the truck bed without a problem. But it went belly up this past summer (as HF products are want to do) and was replaced with a brand new one under warranty. That one is on a rack on the rear of the RV now. But i was next to member 8.1al in Quartzsite this winter and he ran his year+ old HF 3500 in the truck bed with a sheet of plywood over it to protect from the rain.
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Carl (n Susan) There is more to life than fuel mileage.
2012 Montana 3700RL Big Sky Package towed by a 2015 Ford F350 6.7L PSD 4WD CC LWB
The additional front plug in is on my TODO list. Hope to get it done this year. Our rig is in Elkhart for repairs right now, so maybe when we get it back.
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